Francisco Goya The Third Of May 1808
Nghia le
Professor Asman
English 102
10/09/14
The True Meaning Behind Third of May 1808
The Third of May 1808 is a painting by a Spanish artist and literature Francisco Goya. The painting depicts executions of the Spanish resistance by the French soldiers during the Peninsular War. This painting was done at the time when Francisco Goya was affected by his illness and the lost of his dearest wife Josefa Bayeu Goya (Hartigan 51) However, the Peninsular war that destroyed his homeland has truly impacted him on how he view the world he once knew (Hartigan 51). To truly understand Goya painting, the viewers had to look at what is going on behind the war, and at Francisco Goya himself. In this artifact, Goya uses dramatic gruesome situations to …show more content…
emphasize and express his point of view towards good and evil among men. He also developed the use of low lighting techniques to display the emotion, faith, and visual bravery while facing certain death. In 1807, Napoleon Bonaparte wanted to conquer the world; he tricked the king of Spain, Charles IV to fight alongside him to conquer Portugal.
Apparently, Napoleon’s intention was to overthrow Charles IV and takes control of Spain while moving west to conquer the rest of Europe, this is the spark to the Penninsular War (Voorhies). Napoleon’s overthrown Charles IV and appointed his brother as king of Spain soon after. Many Spanish citizens were outraged about the corruptions of their country, some of them rose up in opposition to Napoleon’s but his army executed them all, this gruesome revolution inspired Francisco Goya to paint the Third of May 1808 to pay tributes to his country …show more content…
(Voorhies). The Third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya, illustrates the event that took place in Madrid. This picture was painted to demonstrate bravery, courage, and religious beliefs of the citizens as they opposed to the tyranny, and the response to an atrocity of the war. (Gartigan 51) Goya’s only focused on the expression of each individual character’s face, while the dull faceless soldier back is turned toward the viewer. The helpless individuals seemed to be developing fear and sadness in their faces as they stare death in the eye (Connell). Goya’s intention toward this picture is to help the viewers developed an image and conclusion in their head of the gruesome violence of the war, and show sympathy for the brave men and woman who die for their freedom, and not to criticize the French soldiers as they are being order to execute the innocents (Connell). Mary Connell said, “Faceless and mechanical forces of war itself, blindly killing a representative of humanity” Francisco uses this dramatic drawing to symbolize the horrible conclusion of war and neither side is to blame but to show how fighting always produces evil within ourselves (Connell). The atmospheres of this painting are very dramatic, breathtaking and shocking.
From the brilliant lighting on the huddled citizens, to the sadness on their face and the pool of blood on the ground (Hartigan 51) Goya uses specular color to show the central figure of the Spanish man with the white shirt, yellow pant. This could represent Christianity during that period of time; his stance is strong and similar to Christ on the Cross. (Libby). It’s seems like he is staring pass the barrel of the rifles and into the eyes of his enemy and telling them that he is not afraid to die for a greater cause. While others Spanish men grouped together covering their eyes and hope for a quick death, instead of focused on the brave man about to be killed (Libby) His outstretched arms could represent peace and tranquility, but the soldiers hearts is already tainted with evil which they can care less for what he is doing. Among the captives, lay a dead corpse with his arm also outstretched and his shirt is drenched in blood also asking for peace even in death (Libby). His corpse was tossed aside to make room for others as they line up in a single file. Catholic monks from the nearby town facing certain death while blessing and praying for the living and the dead, perhaps in the effort of giving them some peace in the afterlife
(Libby). The soldiers back is turned toward the viewer illustrate the killing is anonymous, faceless and callous. Although, it’s main purpose is to represent the evil and the darkness aspect of war (Libby). Goya’s wanted the viewer to imagine their faces in their heads as if they were there at the scene with him. The troops’ uniforms are mixed with dark and light colors, to show their clothes were tainted with the blood of the innocent. The darkness of the sky seems to be covered in gunpowder smoke over the heads of the firing squad before the cracked of dawn, while they brought devastation upon the innocent (Connell). Goya placed them standing tall with their rifles pointing directly at the helpless countrymen kneeling down beneath them to symbolize Napoleon’s strength and military warfare in numbers.
In front of the soldiers seems to be a small lantern, shining through the outstretched man and through the selfless individuals character to brighten their shadow underneath the countryside. Even kneeling down to the soldier’s and appears to be weak and afraid, the individual’s illuminate their strength and unite them together through their shadow. Looking over the hillside, a group of captives and soldiers appears to be marching away from the town and to the hillside where the execution began. Before the Third of May 1808, Francisco Goya also painted The Colossus (Huguenaud). The two paintings have the same technique in lighting, showing the effects of war. Goya’s highlighted the man in the white shirt as Christianity, pure and faithful and the giant with a faded color to emphasize evil, and violence of the Napoleon’s army, that’s driven men and animals to flee as his army sweep through Spain killing everything in their path. (Hartigan 51) Francisco Goya demonstrates these two painting as an interpretation his vision of the world falling apart from the brutality of the Napoleon soldiers and the evil within ourselves that drive us mad for power (Hartigan 51). Francisco Goya was in mourning for the lost of his wife, while Napoleon’s massive army is destroying his country. All he can do is to witness the horrible outcome of the war and portraits his deep thoughts and emotion toward the innocents, as they fear for their lives while protecting their beloved motherland (Hartigan 51). Goya’s painted this image with passion to show the audience the true meaning of good and evil within us, he demonstrates that ragging war is not the answer to a peaceful nation. Goya’s starts off by using bright colors to focus on a central character to illustrate a Christ-like figure, but then the surrounding is dark and somber color to represent evil and madness (Libby). Goya’s also display this style of painting in The Colossus, but the central figure is a tall and dark representing the massive Napoleon’s army (Huguenaud). Both of this painting is both emotional and visually shocking, than any others painting he had done previously. Overall, Francisco wanted the viewers to have a mind’s eye view from the message that he is trying to get across using this painting is to show how the war affects countries when raging war on each other. Goya’s also provided us with a warning for the act of violence, which occurs not between countries but deep within ourselves. (Zeppella).
Works Cited
Connell, Mary. “The Atrocities of War.” E-Vision Journal of First-Year Writing. Kevin Jefferson, 13 Sept. 2013. Web. 10 Oct.
“ Francisco Jose De Goya Y Lucien tes.” Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th Edition (2013) 1. Academic Search Complete Web. 9 Oct. 2014.
Huguenaud, Karine. “The Colossus.” Napoleon.org. The Foundation Napoleon, Feb. 2002.Web. 11 Oct. 2014.
Hartigan, Philip. "War Crimes." Meditation. Philip Hartigan, 27 July 2006. Web. 12 Oct. 2014.
Lessing, Erich. “Conflict and Resistance.” Art Through Time: A Global View. Courtesy of Art, 2014. Web. 12 Oct. 2014.
N, Libby. “Art and War.” Art and War. World Politics, 17 Dec. 2007. Web. 10 Oct. 2014
Voorhies, James. “Francisco De Goya (1746-1828) and the Spanish Enlightenment. “Francisco De Goya (1746-1828) and the Spanish Enlightenment. Heibrunn Timeline of Art History 05 Jan. 2000. Web. 07 Oct. 2014.
Zappella, Christine. “Goya’s Third of May, 1808.” Smart history. Khan Academy, 2010. Web. 13 Oct. 2014
Professor Asman
English 102
10/09/14
The True Meaning Behind Third of May 1808
The Third of May 1808 is a painting by a Spanish artist and literature Francisco Goya. The painting depicts executions of the Spanish resistance by the French soldiers during the Peninsular War. This painting was done at the time when Francisco Goya was affected by his illness and the lost of his dearest wife Josefa Bayeu Goya (Hartigan 51) However, the Peninsular war that destroyed his homeland has truly impacted him on how he view the world he once knew (Hartigan 51). To truly understand Goya painting, the viewers had to look at what is going on behind the war, and at Francisco Goya himself. In this artifact, Goya uses dramatic gruesome situations to …show more content…
emphasize and express his point of view towards good and evil among men. He also developed the use of low lighting techniques to display the emotion, faith, and visual bravery while facing certain death. In 1807, Napoleon Bonaparte wanted to conquer the world; he tricked the king of Spain, Charles IV to fight alongside him to conquer Portugal.
Apparently, Napoleon’s intention was to overthrow Charles IV and takes control of Spain while moving west to conquer the rest of Europe, this is the spark to the Penninsular War (Voorhies). Napoleon’s overthrown Charles IV and appointed his brother as king of Spain soon after. Many Spanish citizens were outraged about the corruptions of their country, some of them rose up in opposition to Napoleon’s but his army executed them all, this gruesome revolution inspired Francisco Goya to paint the Third of May 1808 to pay tributes to his country …show more content…
(Voorhies). The Third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya, illustrates the event that took place in Madrid. This picture was painted to demonstrate bravery, courage, and religious beliefs of the citizens as they opposed to the tyranny, and the response to an atrocity of the war. (Gartigan 51) Goya’s only focused on the expression of each individual character’s face, while the dull faceless soldier back is turned toward the viewer. The helpless individuals seemed to be developing fear and sadness in their faces as they stare death in the eye (Connell). Goya’s intention toward this picture is to help the viewers developed an image and conclusion in their head of the gruesome violence of the war, and show sympathy for the brave men and woman who die for their freedom, and not to criticize the French soldiers as they are being order to execute the innocents (Connell). Mary Connell said, “Faceless and mechanical forces of war itself, blindly killing a representative of humanity” Francisco uses this dramatic drawing to symbolize the horrible conclusion of war and neither side is to blame but to show how fighting always produces evil within ourselves (Connell). The atmospheres of this painting are very dramatic, breathtaking and shocking.
From the brilliant lighting on the huddled citizens, to the sadness on their face and the pool of blood on the ground (Hartigan 51) Goya uses specular color to show the central figure of the Spanish man with the white shirt, yellow pant. This could represent Christianity during that period of time; his stance is strong and similar to Christ on the Cross. (Libby). It’s seems like he is staring pass the barrel of the rifles and into the eyes of his enemy and telling them that he is not afraid to die for a greater cause. While others Spanish men grouped together covering their eyes and hope for a quick death, instead of focused on the brave man about to be killed (Libby) His outstretched arms could represent peace and tranquility, but the soldiers hearts is already tainted with evil which they can care less for what he is doing. Among the captives, lay a dead corpse with his arm also outstretched and his shirt is drenched in blood also asking for peace even in death (Libby). His corpse was tossed aside to make room for others as they line up in a single file. Catholic monks from the nearby town facing certain death while blessing and praying for the living and the dead, perhaps in the effort of giving them some peace in the afterlife
(Libby). The soldiers back is turned toward the viewer illustrate the killing is anonymous, faceless and callous. Although, it’s main purpose is to represent the evil and the darkness aspect of war (Libby). Goya’s wanted the viewer to imagine their faces in their heads as if they were there at the scene with him. The troops’ uniforms are mixed with dark and light colors, to show their clothes were tainted with the blood of the innocent. The darkness of the sky seems to be covered in gunpowder smoke over the heads of the firing squad before the cracked of dawn, while they brought devastation upon the innocent (Connell). Goya placed them standing tall with their rifles pointing directly at the helpless countrymen kneeling down beneath them to symbolize Napoleon’s strength and military warfare in numbers.
In front of the soldiers seems to be a small lantern, shining through the outstretched man and through the selfless individuals character to brighten their shadow underneath the countryside. Even kneeling down to the soldier’s and appears to be weak and afraid, the individual’s illuminate their strength and unite them together through their shadow. Looking over the hillside, a group of captives and soldiers appears to be marching away from the town and to the hillside where the execution began. Before the Third of May 1808, Francisco Goya also painted The Colossus (Huguenaud). The two paintings have the same technique in lighting, showing the effects of war. Goya’s highlighted the man in the white shirt as Christianity, pure and faithful and the giant with a faded color to emphasize evil, and violence of the Napoleon’s army, that’s driven men and animals to flee as his army sweep through Spain killing everything in their path. (Hartigan 51) Francisco Goya demonstrates these two painting as an interpretation his vision of the world falling apart from the brutality of the Napoleon soldiers and the evil within ourselves that drive us mad for power (Hartigan 51). Francisco Goya was in mourning for the lost of his wife, while Napoleon’s massive army is destroying his country. All he can do is to witness the horrible outcome of the war and portraits his deep thoughts and emotion toward the innocents, as they fear for their lives while protecting their beloved motherland (Hartigan 51). Goya’s painted this image with passion to show the audience the true meaning of good and evil within us, he demonstrates that ragging war is not the answer to a peaceful nation. Goya’s starts off by using bright colors to focus on a central character to illustrate a Christ-like figure, but then the surrounding is dark and somber color to represent evil and madness (Libby). Goya’s also display this style of painting in The Colossus, but the central figure is a tall and dark representing the massive Napoleon’s army (Huguenaud). Both of this painting is both emotional and visually shocking, than any others painting he had done previously. Overall, Francisco wanted the viewers to have a mind’s eye view from the message that he is trying to get across using this painting is to show how the war affects countries when raging war on each other. Goya’s also provided us with a warning for the act of violence, which occurs not between countries but deep within ourselves. (Zeppella).
Works Cited
Connell, Mary. “The Atrocities of War.” E-Vision Journal of First-Year Writing. Kevin Jefferson, 13 Sept. 2013. Web. 10 Oct.
“ Francisco Jose De Goya Y Lucien tes.” Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th Edition (2013) 1. Academic Search Complete Web. 9 Oct. 2014.
Huguenaud, Karine. “The Colossus.” Napoleon.org. The Foundation Napoleon, Feb. 2002.Web. 11 Oct. 2014.
Hartigan, Philip. "War Crimes." Meditation. Philip Hartigan, 27 July 2006. Web. 12 Oct. 2014.
Lessing, Erich. “Conflict and Resistance.” Art Through Time: A Global View. Courtesy of Art, 2014. Web. 12 Oct. 2014.
N, Libby. “Art and War.” Art and War. World Politics, 17 Dec. 2007. Web. 10 Oct. 2014
Voorhies, James. “Francisco De Goya (1746-1828) and the Spanish Enlightenment. “Francisco De Goya (1746-1828) and the Spanish Enlightenment. Heibrunn Timeline of Art History 05 Jan. 2000. Web. 07 Oct. 2014.
Zappella, Christine. “Goya’s Third of May, 1808.” Smart history. Khan Academy, 2010. Web. 13 Oct. 2014